Galaxy Note 9 – specs and features

Since the Note 7 debacle, we have seen Samsung take the safe road with their Note line-up, but here they are again pushing boundaries again like we’ve known them to do. The company is slightly behind competitors, but they should continue on this track with next year’s Galaxy S10 if they expect to remain ahead in the global smartphone market.

Display

The Note 9 and Note 8 have identical bodies, with the Note 9’s display being 0.1 inches (at 6.4 inches) larger than that of its predecessor. The display is one of the things that Samsung truly excels at. The display is the same one seen on the Galaxy S9, but really now, can they even provide better than that?

S-Pen Features

We can’t mention any Note device without discussing the S-Pen, the Note’s signature feature. The S-Pen’s signature feature this year, is that it now supports Bluetooth Low-Energy (BLE), allowing users to use the S-Pen’s button to do all kinds of things that includes taking a picture, presenting slides, pausing and playing videos, and more. The S-Pen’s BLE functionalities will be available to developers later on this year to integrate it into their own apps.

Camera Features

The Note 9’s cameras are pretty much the same used on the Galaxy S9 (yes, this means it includes the same variable mechanical aperture we saw on the S9) with the addition of AI, for better photography. The device uses AI to identify elements in the photo, classifying it into one of 20 categories and optimizing colors based on category. It’s about time that Samsung chose to include intelligence for better scene identification and better photography, but the company is about a year too late. Here’s to hoping that we see some more camera innovation with next year’s Galaxy S9.

The camera also comes with a flaw detection feature that notifies users immediately if the image is blurry, if the subject blinked, or if any other flaws exist in the image.

Additional Galaxy Features

Large Battery: Galaxy Note9’s 4,000 mAh battery, the largest ever on a flagship Galaxy phone.

More Storage: Galaxy Note9 is available with two internal storage options – 128GB or 512GB. And with the ability to insert a microSD card up to 512 GB.

Water cooled. The Note 9 uses a water-carbon fiber cooling system to prevent overheating and deliver sustained high performance, though our testing didn’t yield impressive results.

DeX without the dock. You only need an adapter and an HDMI cable to turn the Note 9 into a mini PC rather than a $69 accessory. The phone doubles as a touchpad.

What’s in the Box

What should you expect to receive in the box when you buy a Galaxy Note 9? Here’s a list: